Woods' old swing could have been a winner, too

Published 4:00 am, Sunday, April 17, 2005

Validation. That's what Tiger Woods said his Masters victory meant to him.

Most fans aren't aware that one of the perks of winning the Masters, along with the goes-swell-with-any-outfit green blazer, is validated parking on Magnolia Lane at the next Masters.

However, it's possible that the "validation" to which Woods referred was the validation that he did the right thing in redesigning his golf swing over the last couple years.

"I read some of the articles over the past year," Tiger said, "(swing coach Hank Haney) getting ripped and me getting ripped for the changes -- and to play as beautifully as I did all week is pretty cool."

But here's something to ponder: What if Tiger had stuck with the swing that won him four majors in a row, the so-called Tiger Slam?

During the swing-rebuilding period known as the Reconstruction II, Woods went winless in 10 majors.

Because the swing he tossed into the dumpster was good enough to win four straight majors, isn't it plausible that he could have used that cruddy swing to win, say, five of those next 10 majors?

Maybe all 10, because his closest rivals were becoming more and more discouraged. Tiger let 'em back in the game.

This is not to disparage Woods' never-ending quest for the True Swing. Like any search for ultimate enlightenment, it can never end. Tiger marches to a drum that no other golfer can hear (so it's like a dog drum). He is golf's ultimate seeker.

Which is cool.

But that doesn't mean his fourth Masters win, as the headlines like to say, "silences critics."

Critics can never be silenced. For instance, my tombstone epitaph will be: "Is that any way to shovel dirt?"

More deep thoughts, cheap shots & bon mots . . .

-- "The steroid issue has been a cloud over baseball," said President Bush. Then he threw out the first pitch before a screaming sellout crowd of 45, 596 in the city where the baseball steroid hearings were held.

-- Baseball Hall of Fame inductees no longer get to choose which team's cap they'll wear on their plaque. However, the Sporting Green's Mark Smoyer notes that an inductee still gets to choose which skull will go on his plaque.

-- If Phil Mickelson was so wrong a couple years ago when he said Tiger was playing with "inferior equipment," why did Woods junk that equipment and go with new clubs and balls, then win the Masters?

-- Before you rip Terrell Owens for demanding a new contract, walk a mile in his shoes. Better yet, play a Super Bowl in his shoes, with a broken leg. Just because TO lacks tact and humility doesn't mean he's not worth every dime he's demanding.

-- Besides, who among us doesn't secretly wish we'd had the guts somewhere along the line to stand up and say, "Just take a moment and look at my stature in the game"?

-- Public humiliation is supposed to be a major deterrent to steroid use in MLB's new policy. Commissioner Bud Selig said, "I think the naming of these players publicly is a huge story that they will never live down." USA Today headline on a story about the first player busted, Alex Sanchez: "Sanchez's return barely creates a stir."

-- Now that Michael Vick's alias has been outed, he will have to retire Ron Mexico. Any suggestions? If the charges prove true, Vick could go with Hank Herpes.

-- The most impressive aspect of Tiger's win at Augusta was his mastery over the ball Sunday. There was the stop-'n'-flop on No. 16, where Woods' ball stopped dead on the lip -- then dived into the cup. No. 6 was more amazing. Chris DiMarco lands his tee shot on the steep slope of the slick green. Tiger knows DiMarco's ball is barely clinging to that slope. So Tiger steps away from his tee shot -- to give DiMarco's ball more time to lose its grip? Then the vibration from Woods' ball plopping on the green jars loose DiMarco's ball, which rolls back off the green. That's magic.

-- I don't have all the details of that Shawn Kemp bust involving drugs and guns. Of the two men in the pickup truck, I'm not sure which one was driving and which one was riding handgun.

-- Networks have been known to "sweeten" their golf tournament telecasts with canned bird chirps. I don't know if CBS opened up a can of canaries for its Masters telecast, but at least some of that background chirping and squeaking was the wheels coming off Ernie Els.

-- Of course, there's the Hooters owl that now perches on John Daly's shoulder when he plays.

-- Tiger's only flaw at the Masters was his driving accuracy. Sources tell me Woods is dumping Haney and turning to a team of gay swing coaches -- Queer Eye For the Not-So-Straight Guy.